Posted on 02/15/2018 5:53:54 AM PST by MarvinStinson
The U.S. Army will drop its hand grenade competency requirement for graduation from basic training because getting recruits to pass it is taking “too much time” and they’re just not strong enough, Major General Malcolm Frost told reporters on Friday.
Changes to the Army’s Basic Combat Training (BTC) will eliminate the current hand grenade proficiency standards as a requirement for graduation, Military.com reports:
“The new BCT does, however, do away with hand grenade qualification and land navigation course qualification as graduation requirements.”
Discussing the change with reporters, Maj. Gen. Frost explained that training recruits to pass the current requirement was taking too much time:
"What we have found is it is taking far, far too much time. It's taking three to four times as much time ... just to qualify folks on the hand grenade course than we had designated so what is happening is it is taking away from other aspects of training.”
Plus, trainees just aren’t strong enough to throw the grenade far enough away – and simply can’t be taught to properly throw a grenade “if they haven’t thrown growing up” – Maj. Gen. Frost explained:
"We are finding that there are a large number of trainees that come in that quite frankly just physically don't have the capacity to throw a hand grenade 20 to 25 to 30 meters. In 10 weeks, we are on a 48-hour period; you are just not going to be able to teach someone how to throw if they haven't thrown growing up."
Still, the amount of grenade training won’t be reduced – developing enough proficiency to meet the current standards just won’t be required - Maj. Gen. Frost said:
"Just because we took it off as a graduation requirement does not mean they won't be conducting hand grenade or land navigation training."
“They are going to learn all the technical aspects of the hand grenade, and they are going to learn tactical employment and they will throw a live hand grenade.”
As Army Times reports, in order to save time trying to teach trainees to meet requirements, hand grenade training will be blended into other exercises:
“Rather than spend time getting soldiers through the hand grenade and land navigation qualification courses in order to graduate basic, those skills will be incorporated into three new field training exercises, dubbed Hammer, Anvil and Forge.”
I recall the grenade throw in combat proficiency exam in military academy—just a dummy, but, I hit the stake 2 out of 3 times at 30 yards. I admit, there was some luck involved.
Back in the Bronze Age I was a pretty good pitcher.
Maybe that had something to do with this article causing a WTH?!
Gotta wonder how today’s average recruit would measure up against the average (likely)undernourished farm boy gettin’ off the bus in 1941.
https://i.imgur.com/cXvdC4r.gif
Infantry Maxim #35: “When the pin is pulled, Mr. Grenade is no longer your friend.”
Yeah, that’ll turn out well..
Because, like NOBODY uses those icky grenades anymore...
Guess they’re too heavy for the females and trannies...?
/s
That's pretty much what we did in BCT, except they were inert grenades. There was a 55 gallon drum at each end to lob them into. That became possible due to the ballistic trajectory of the throwing technique taught. When we had down time between scheduled training we squad leaders were to take our men out to the company grenade field to practice.
If we saw one of the trainees was weak in any skill, it was our job to bring them up to speed. This was in 1965, so always on our minds was many of us would be facing real war in a few months.
When I was in ROTC basic there was a guy who had grown up playing soccer and who was on his college crew team who could not pass the grenade throw part of the PT test. Strength was not the problem.
Thank you kindly!
“Welcome to the Girl Scouts.”
Indeed.
I heard recently that they’re also getting rid of the skill of stringing com wire. I think it was a MOS, not sure of the actual title. Now it’s all gone to wireless communication.
I thought there was snowflake deferment
Teach them how to hop on a live grenade then since they are unable or unwilling to throw one away from them and their team.
Even if YOU may not ever throw a grenade at someone, doesn’t mean you won’t still have to deal with one in war.
At Fort Knox in 1990, “cooking off” and “skipping” a grenade was taught to Armor trainees then. Even how to toss into a bunker. Probably not now.
I saw a trainee get a low airburst about 2 or 3 foot off the ground close to the Russian dummy target.
True words.
Might hurt a snowflake if they actually taught them to be a damned warrior.
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